Malala inspires, yet again

Youngest-ever Nobel Laureate tells the world what feminism is all about

It was a statement against closing of borders to people on the basis of differences in colour, race and faith. It was a stand for sex egalitarianism, a vindication for feminism. And, most of all, it was an indictment of Islamic fundamentalism—that has resulted in the scourge of terrorism threatening the world today.

Malala Yousafzai’s speech of acceptance of her honorary citizenship of Canada was marked by quiet conviction, humour and grace even as she complimented Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for his youthful charisma and popularity with members of the fairer sex.

“When I was coming here, everyone was telling me, shake the prime minister’s hand, let us know how he looks in reality; people were so excited about meeting Trudeau I don’t think anyone cared about the Canadian honorary citizenship,” Malala said.

In fact, Malala has a lot in common with Trudeau. Both share the youngest distinction. While the now-45-year-old Trudeau is the second youngest Canadian PM, Malala, at 19, is the country’s youngest honorary citizen.

“I am a Muslim and I believe that when you pick up a gun in the name of Islam and kill innocent people, you are not a Muslim anymore,” Malala, significantly, said.

She also asked the younger generation to stand up and be counted in the global fight against inequality and for justice, a role that many have found them to be lacking in. Here are her exact words to that effect:

“Dear sisters and brothers, we have a responsibility to improve our world. When future generations read about us in their books or on their iPads or whatever the next innovation will be, I don’t want them to be shocked that 130 million girls could not go to school and we did nothing. I don’t want them to be shocked we did not stand up for child refugees, as millions of families fled their homes. I don’t want us to be known for failing them.”

Views on News, unique magazine that monitors and takes a critical look at the challenging, competitive world of Indian and global media every fortnight; and Akbari, a weekly newspaper in Hindi and Urdu.